Hibernian Irish Pub & Restaurant, which has been in Cary for 11 years, will close Saturday, Aug. 15, to make way for Newk’s Eatery, officials said. The move doesn’t affect Hibernian’s two Raleigh locations.
COURTESY OF HIBERNIAN

Hibernian Irish Pub & Restaurant, which has been in Cary for 11 years, will close Saturday, Aug. 15, to make way for Newk’s Eatery, officials said. The move doesn’t affect Hibernian’s two Raleigh locations.
COURTESY OF HIBERNIAN

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Newk’s Eatery is a fast-casual eatery with fresh salads, soups, sandwiches and pizzas. This will be the first Triangle location and is part of the long-term plans for the Jackson, Miss.-based company, said Chris Cheek, chief development officer for Newk’s, in an email.

Construction is expected to begin on Newk’s after Hibernian vacates the Kildaire Farm Road location with the restaurant opening in late November, Cheek said.

Hibernian has two locations in Raleigh – on Glenwood Avenue and Falls of the Neuse Road. The company said the decision to lease the Cary property to Newk’s doesn’t affect the other two Hibernian locations.

All employees there are being offered positions at other bars or restaurants owned by Hibernian Management, which include the two other Hibernian pubs as well as the new Raleigh Beer Garden, Solas nightclub and others, the company said.

Bloom said there won’t be any closing-day extravaganza at the Cary Hibernian – just the regular specials and hours. But he said he thinks there will still be a large crowd, and that’s part of the reason the company wanted to keep a Hibernian somewhere in Cary.

“The neighborhood and the crowds and the regulars have all been tremendous over there,” Bloom said. “That’s why (Hanley) is saying there are definite plans to continue on in downtown.”

The Cary location of Newk’s Eatery will be representative of a new look that’s starting in Lafayette, La., Cheek said. Newk’s plans to open 10 to 12 locations in the Triangle in the coming years as part of the company’s overall expansion, Cheek said. There are currently 83 locations throughout the South and the Southeast. The company hopes to have more than 200 locations by 2018.

The Triangle sites will be corporate-owned, Cheek said, though other geographic areas may have franchisees.